Resources

T

his page actually lists a number of different kinds of resources for listeners to folk and roots music, as you see listed on the right. Some credits for the site follow at the end.

Latest additions 1/23/24.
Last thoroughly reviewed 12/27/22.

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Musicians’ Web Sites

There must be thousands of artists’ sites; we have picked a very few that we think may be of particular interest to our listeners. Also, check the playlist for the date you heard something for links to that artist’s or band’s site.

As a first suggestion for finding more musicians’ sites, browse through some of the online resources that follow, or try some of the standard Internet search engines, such as Google. Entering “www.artistname.com” as a location is often worth trying as well.

Don’t overlook the Wikipedia for articles and links and a YouTube search for videos new and old.

Some of the sites listed under “Music at Large” have good collections of artists’ links.

Here are some quick listings. More descriptive entries for some of our favorites follow.

Some great musicians and bands from our area (and up the coast): Ancient Future, Patrick Ball, BrightSide Blue, Broceliande, Dan Cantrell, Danny Carnahan, Kevin Carr, Brian Cutean, Peppino D’Agostino, Todd Denman, Briana di Mara, The Feelings Parade, Marla Fibish (Noctambule, Three Mile Stone), Robin Flower and Libby McLaren, Diana Gameros, Stanley Greenthal, Sylvia Herold, Linda Hirschhorn and Vocolot, Amelia Hogan, JouJou, Paul Kamm and Eleanore MacDonald, Mamak Khadem, Laurie Lewis, PickPocket Ensemble, Kate Price, Riggy Rackin, Joanne Rand, Rupa & the April Fishes, Solstice, Marya Stark, Pireeni Sundaralingam & Colm Ó Riain, Linda Tillery, Wake the Dead, Mary Youngblood.

Some local musicians and bands in Greek, Balkan, and Middle Eastern styles in particular: Lucia Comnes, Eliyahu and the Qadim Ensemble, Juliana Graffagna and Janam, Shira Kammen, Kitka, Nada Lewis, Hamed Nikpay, Robin Petrie, Tim Rayborn, Diana Rowan, Lily Storm, Teslim with Kaila Flexer and Gari Hegedus, Rachel Valfer.

Some popular North American singer-songwriters: Greg Brown, Slaid Cleaves, Kris Delmhorst, Krista Detor, Ani DiFranco, Eliza Gilkyson, John Gorka, Tish Hinojosa, Janis Ian, Cindy Kallet, Lucy Kaplansky, Patty Larkin, Anaïs Mitchell, Carrie Newcomer, Tom Russell, Claudia Schmidt, Chris Webster, Gillian Welch, Dar Williams, Lucinda Williams.

Some preeminant Irish, Anglo-Irish, and Irish-American bands and artists: Altan, Anúna, Luka Bloom, Paul Brady, Karan Casey, Cran, Danú, Dervish, Séamus Egan, FullSet, Frankie Gavin, Gráda, Martin Hayes, Kíla, Lúnasa, Áine Minogue, Christy Moore, Melanie O’Reilly, Niamh Parsons, Cathie Ryan, Slide, Moira Smiley & VOCO, Téada. See also the profiles at Ceolas.

Here too are some Scottish artists and bands: Dàimh, Iona Fyfe, Julie Fowlis, Alasdair Fraser, Ímar, Lau, Jim Malcolm, Malinky, Shetland harpist Catriona McKay, Old Blind Dogs, Karine Polwart, The Poozies, Eddi Reader, The Tannahill Weavers.

Some musicians from Devon and Cornwall in particular (a few of whom are detailed below). The two counties form practically another Celtic land: Holly Ebony, Adrian Freedman, Carolyn Hillyer, Sadie Horler, Seth Lakeman, Anna Ling, Charlotte Mabon, Zoë Pollock, Susie Ro, Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman, Ayla Schafer.

And more artists from around England (some of whom are detailed below): Nick Barbachano, Eliza Carthy, Olivia Chaney, Alexia Chellun, Keith Christmas, Josienne Clarke, Shirley Collins, Damh the Bard, Olivia Fern, Sam Garrett, Nessi Gomes, Victoria Grebezs (Storia), Fay Hield, Robb Johnson, Seckou Keita, Nancy Kerr, Sharron Kraus, Lady Maisery, Sam Lee, Jez Lowe, Kitty Macfarlane, Rory McLeod, Jacqui McShee, the Nest Collective, Emily Portman, Maddy Prior, Lou Rhodes, Leon Rosselson, Anne Sumner, Richard Thompson, Kathryn Tickell, Martha Tilston, Steve Tilston, Chris Wood.

And musicians from Iberia, including Green Spain (Galicia, Asturias, and Cantabria) and Portugal: Ana Alcaide, Maria del Mar Bonet, Felpeyu, Llan de Cubel, Efrén López, Madredeus, Maro, Carlos Nuñez, Cristina Pato, Silvia Perez Cruz, Lídia Pujol, María Salgado, Sangre de Muerdago, Susana Seivane, Uxía, Rosa Zaragoza.

And Scandinavian musicians and bands: Mari Boine, The Danish String Quartet, Tina Dico, Dråm, Dreamers’ Circus, Frigg, Hedningarna, Olov Johansson, Karelian Folk Music Ensemble, Annbjørg Lien, Mia Marin, Ale Möller, Songleikr, Triakel, Värttinä, Väsen.

And artists in the emerging genre of música medicina (some of whom are further detailed below), rooted in Andean and Amazonian traditions, supporting a growing awareness of our place on earth: Nick Barbachano, Yair & Naya Bart, Mirabai Ceiba, Curawaka, Danza Colibrí, Alonso del Río, Maneesh de Moor, Freedom Café, Nessi Gomes, Darwin Grajales, Grupo Putumayo, Jesús Hidalgo, Nicolas Losada, Luna Santa, Fherley Majin, Bruno Mansur, Minük, Chris Orange, Zoë Pollock, Puentes, the Sacred Circle Collective, Ayla Schafer, Rainer Scheurenbrand, Shimshai & Susana, Orka Teppler, Danit Treubig. Cf. the Música Medicina Movimiento Mundial Facebook pages.


Ajeet, formerly Ajeet Kaur, who also performs as Siobhán Moore, first made her name singing Sikh mantras but has branched out into Irish music and other musics of the world, as part of the duo Woven Kin with County Cork harpist Aisling Urwin and with her band that also typically includes fellow New Hampshirite guitarist Ezra Landis and percussionist Raffa Martinez from Barcelona.

Steve Baughman, wonderfully sensitive and inventive local guitarist, casually tosses off new styles at every turn—clawhammer guitar, Zen banjo, new approaches to Celtic and Hawaiian music, the Orkney tuning.... He has also produced some very entertaining but instructive instructional videos.

Jennifer Berezan, a local eclectic visionary artist with Canadian roots.

Eric Bibb, singer-songwriter with acoustic blues underpinnings and a humane contemporary approach showing much awareness of present-day issues.

Pages for Ireland’s famed Black Family: Michael Black, Shay Black, Mary Black, Frances Black, and the Black Brothers.

The official site for Eliza Carthy, fiddler and singer-songwriter, master of traditional and contemporary styles, heir to the Waterson/Carthy tradition.

Rosanne Cash, author and singer-songwriter, daughter of Johnny Cash.

Olivia Chaney, wonderfully expressive English singer-songwriter.

Alexia Chellun, from the south of London and of Cypriot and Mauritian ancestry, offers magnetic and deeply insightful songs.

Keith Christmas is a legendary English singer-songwriter (author of “Fable of the Wings”) who toured with famous bands of the 1960s era but who has produced some of his most striking work in the last few years.

Josienne Clarke, singer-songwriter and rising talent from England.

Bruce Cockburn is an inspired Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist and long-time favorite whose work is further documented on two unofficial sites, the Cockburn Project site and Gavin’s Woodpile.

Andrew Cronshaw is an English zither player responsible for some amazingly evocative collaborations. He is also the author of numerous music reviews.

Curawaka, Earth defenders offering música medicina from South American traditions, led by the amazing Anna Bariyani, originally from Norway, who sings in seven languages.

Ross Daly, the brilliant multi-instrumentalist and composer in varied Eastern traditions.

Kris Delmhorst, bold and brilliant singer-songwriter from the Boston area.

Alonso del Río is a singer-songwriter as well as teacher who is actively involved in efforts to save the Amazon as well as in permaculture and in working to heal the conceptual rift between spirit and nature. He has numerous albums as well as two books available as PDFs that show a deep understanding of Andean and world traditions. They are available in English. He also sometimes sings in English.

Alice Di Micele, a singer-songwriter in varied styles but often showing her roots in the land of her southern Oregon home.

Portia Diwa is a local lever harp performer, teacher, composer, and recording artist. Portia plays Celtic, Latin, original, and traditional music from around the world.

Ani Chöying Drolma is the amazing singing nun from Nepal who has evolved her art within a Tibetan Buddhist tradition and launched some major humanitarian efforts. (And you may recall her collaborations with Minneapolis avant garde guitarist Steve Tibbetts.) See also her Facebook page and this additional site. And read her memoir Singing for Freedom, available from this site.

Steve Earle, the gifted singer-songwriter, record producer, author, and actor with roots in country music.

Fairport Convention, the venerable folk-rock band.

Faun is a German band bridging pagan, medieval, and modern realms. Their newest member, Swiss multi-instrumentalist Adaya, also has solo albums that we like to share.

Olivia Fern, with her lovely voice, great songwriting and creative arrangements, and deep affinity for the natural world, from the Lake District, England.

Finest Kind, the very versatile and harmonious trio from western Canada.

Nina Gerber is an expressive and versatile guitarist long valued as an accompanist and musicians’ musician but gaining prominence as a soloist.

Rhiannon Giddens, the brilliant American roots musician, co-founder of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, more lately known for her collaborations with multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi.

Nessi Gomes, raised by Portuguese parents on the Isle of Guernsey and infused by a love of fado, but later finding a spiritual opening on a retreat in Costa Rica and inspired to share música medicina and deeply personal original songs.

Marta Gómez, the wonderfully expressive singer and composer in a Latin jazz idiom from Colombia.

Gone Gone Beyond is an eclectic band based in Southern California “delivering a potent message of hope and the desire to return to humanity.”

Trevor Hall, originally from South Carolina, is a major figure in emerging forms of roots and folk music, drawing from Eastern mysticism and “touching on the timeless human themes of love, struggle, growth, and redemption.” Here is an interview that shines some light on his process.

The late Jack Hardy, the magus of Greenwich Village and founder of Fast Folk.

Joy Harjo, Muscogee Creek musician, poet, and author, past three-term Poet Laureate of the U.S.

Carolyn Hillyer lives on the land in a stone round house constructed along ancient lines in Dartmoor, Devon, southwest England, and her songs and chants reflect the place and carry on age-old traditions. Besides her concerts and recorded music, she conducts residential and online workshops.

In Gowan Ring, symbolist folk music from the itinerant artist known as B’eirth or B’ee, who is also the mainstay of the band called Birch Book.

Andy Irvine, famed of Planxty, Patrick Street, and numerous other connections. See also this fan site with a rich collection of stories, notes on instruments, and more.

Sarah Jarosz, the rising singer-songwriter from Texas.

Lyla June Johnston is “an Indigenous public speaker, artist, scholar, and community organizer of Diné (Navajo), Tsétsêhéstâhese (Cheyenne) and European lineages from Taos, New Mexico. Her messages focus on Indigenous rights, supporting youth, traditional land stewardship practices, and healing inter-generational and inter-cultural trauma.” You can find numerous talks and performances mainly on YouTube.

Si Kahn, the folk singer, songsmith, and organizer who founded and long headed Grassroots Leadership, which advocates for prison reform and other causes. He is now active in Musicians United to Protect Bristol Bay, one of the groups working to stop the Pebble Mine in Alaska, and has produced a musical, “Mother Jones in Heaven,” drawing on the life of the legendary labor and community organizer.

Amethyst Kiah, singer-songwriter from Tennessee who also appeared on the album Songs of Our Native Daughters.

Kaki King, the guitarist-composer called “a genre unto herself.”

Sharron Kraus, English singer-songwriter with strong Transatlantic ties.

Laboratorium Pieśni, the Song Laboratory from Gdansk, Poland. Seven women draw on Eastern European harmony traditions to produce music like nothing else in this world.

Sam Lee is an heir to the English ballad tradition, sitting around the kitchen table with aging source singers and interpreting their songs in contemporary terms. He is also active in preserving the natural life of England, leading parties to share music with nightingales and the author of the lovely book The Nightingale, available through his web site.

The late David Lindley, multi-instrumentalist extraodinaire.

Jez Lowe, the great performer and songwriter from Durham in the Northeast of England.

Yo-Yo Ma, the outstanding cellist who has gained our attention especially for his explorations of world music in the Silk Road Ensemble and of American roots music in efforts such as the Goat Rodeo Sessions.

Charlotte Mabon offers music with healing powers from Devon.

Kitty Macfarlane, the singer-songwriter from Somerset with deep affinities for land and sea.

Dougie MacLean, the celebrated and award-winning long-time singer-songwriter and composer from Dunkeld, Scotland.

Tina Malia, visionary singer-songwriter and presenter of sacred chants. This interview offers some insight into her experience and approach.

Mamalama (or here), a highly original ensemble from the Hudson River Valley in New York, led by harpist/composer Elizabeth Clark but also including Annie Roland, of an old favorite duo called Barely Lace. See also their Facebook page.

MaMuse, the duo from Sebastopol of Sarah Nutting and Karisha Longaker, combining brilliant harmonies, emotional intelligence, and a love of life.

Sierra Marin, from Southern California, fuses folk, hip-hop, and reggae forms, infusing them with brilliant and inspired lyrics. Her Facebook page includes more up-to-date info. This interview is also a useful introduction to her work.

John McCutcheon, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, folklorist.

Loreena McKennitt, eclectic Celtic singer-songwriter from Canada with a poetic sensibility, with her Quinlan Road label.

Susan McKeown with numerous great collaborations and solo projects.

Misner & Smith is a local duo offering searching and poetic lyrics set in lovely harmonies.

Nahko, known as Nahko Bear and the mainstay of Nahko and Medicine for the People, is a key figure in an emerging alternative music.

Ayla Nereo, creative singer-songwriter and multimedia artist from Northern California, half of the duo Wildlight with David Sugalski aka the Polish Ambassador. Here is an interview full of insights.

Linde Nijland, Dutch singer-songwriter and author of many striking songs who also covers some surprising things, formerly half of the duo Ygdrassil.

Tim O’Brien, the multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter from West Virginia who can “provide a handy map to rough roads.”

Aoife O’Donovan, Grammy Award–winning singer-songwriter and lead singer for the band Crooked Still.

Omnia, the stylistically diverse neoceltic pagan folk band based in the Netherlands.

Peia, in full Peia Luzzi, the hypnotic “archival songkeeper” based in Appalachia.

Utah Phillips: a short jog through a long memory, dedicated to the late anarchopagan singer-songwriter.

Karine Polwart, the singer, songwriter, composer, and essayist from Stirlingshire, Scotland. Her music combines a roots feel with expressions of contemporary concerns.

Emily Portman, from the northeast of England, offers her original haunting, surrealistic songs that likewise retain a traditional ballad feeling.

Maddy Prior of Steeleye Span and Silly Sisters fame.

The band Quetzal, from East L.A., with lead singer / percussionist / songwriter Martha Gonzalez, offer tuneful and danceable songs with acute, socially conscious lyrics across several genres in Spanish and English.

Legendary English guitarist John Renbourn managed this Web site as his own personal project.

Lou Rhodes, the creative singer-songwriter from Manchester, England.

Rising Appalachia, the two sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith, plus supporting musicians, originally from Atlanta but now very global.

Susie Ro, the moving singer-songwriter, composer for choirs, and workshop leader from Devon.

Alasdair Roberts, from Glasgow, offers fresh interpretations of traditional ballads as well as very original and reflective songs.

Olivia Rosebery, a sound healer and emerging voice for the Earth from Byron Bay, New South Wales, who speaks to Indigenous rights, women’s rights, resistance to environmental devastation, earth spirituality, and unity consciousness.

Peter Rowan, with his half-century of notable collaborations and brilliant music ranging from bluegrass outward.

Xavier Rudd, Australian multi-instrumentalist whose songs often “incorporate socially conscious themes, such as spirituality, humanity, environmentalism, and the rights of Indigenous Australians.”

Kate Rusby, the English traditional singer.

Alison Russell, Canadian singer-songwriter, former member of Po’ Girl, Birds of Chicago, Our Native Daughters, and other groups.

Ayla Schafer, bilingual ceremonial musician, originally from Hertfordshire but enriched by years in Mexico and Peru and now living in Devon. This interview offers a fascinating look at her path.

Shimshai & Susana are a Northern California duo performing música medicina but are also herbalists and offer consultations and ceremonial retreats from their center at the base of Mount Shasta. They have deep roots in Colombian and other Indigenous musics and cultures.

The official site for guitar wizard Martin Simpson.

Starling Arrow is an amazing mostly vocal supergroup including Ayla Nereo, Tina Malia, Marya Stark, and Leah Song and Chloe Smith of Rising Appalachia.

The duo Still on the Hill brings us their wonderfully original music with bluegrass roots.

Diana Stork and Portia Diwa, strikingly original local harpists, composers, and teachers.

Orka Teppler, or Orka Forest Teppler, or simply Orka, from Tel Aviv, offers música medicina and many inspiring original songs, solo or with her bands Orot (mostly in Hebrew) and Forestt (mostly in English).

Richard Thompson, the veteran singer-songwriter and guitarist with roots in Fairport Convention and the English folk revival, but with a long solo career.

Martha Tilston, English singer-songwriter and author of songs at once socially conscious, imaginative, and evocatively arranged.

Steve Tilston, long-time English performer and fine and expressive songwriter and guitarist.

Marta Topferova, a mellifluous and expressive multilingual singer/songwriter most associated with Nueva Canción and Latin jazz idioms, but likewise wonderfully poetic, expressive, and deep in Czech, Moravian, and English.

New!  Lotte Walda, the ebullient author of songs aimed at inspiring a better world, from the Netherlands, but singing almost exclusively in English.

Our modern bard Robin Williamson and a site for his old group, the Incredible String Band.

The Kate Wolf memorial Web site for the great voice of Northern California.

Wookiefoot is “a band, a non-profit charity organization..., a circus, a philosophy, and a community of globe trekking bliss junkies” from Minneapolis presenting a festive stage show in eclectic musical styles that manages to impart much awareness of the human condition and also to donate heavily to environmental and social justice causes.

Gabriel Yacoub, founder of the French folk revival band Malicorne, who went on to produce musically rich and poetic solo work.

New!  Yaima, the Seattle duo of Masaru Higasa and Pepper Proud, aiming to create a bridge between nature and humankind through organic rhythms and heartened lyricism.

Independent Record Labels

These are the names that turn up frequently for indie labels. For more obscure labels or self-produced albums, please check the lists at the end of this section or the playlist for the program with the song in question.

Appleseed Recordings, P.O. Box 2593, West Chester, PA 19380; 610-701-5755.

Arhoolie Records, 10341 San Pablo Ave, El Cerrito CA 94530; 510-525-7471.

Canyon Records, 3131 W. Clarendon Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85017; 800-268-1141.

Claddagh Records, 65 Middle Abbey Street, Dublin 1 Ireland; 353 1 8720075

Cló Iar-Chonnachta, Indreabhán, Conamara, Co. na Gaillimhe, Éire/Ireland, +353-91-593307, is a book and music publisher with a strong interest in Irish language and culture and sean-nós music.

Compass Records, 916 19th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212; 615-320-7672.

Coop Breizh, Kerangwenn, 29540 Spézet/Speied, Bretagne, France. The leading Breton label.

Culburnie Records, P.O. Box 219, Nevada City, CA 95959; 800-830-6296.

Fellside Recordings, P.O. Box 40, Workington, Cumbria, CA14 3GJ, UK.

Fledg’ling Records, P.O. Box 547, London SE26 4BD, England. Recordings of some popular English folk revivalists; the site includes bios and discographies.

FM Records S.A., 7 Knossou str., 11146 Athens, Greece; Phone: + 00 (301) 2222301 / + 00 (301) 2230600, Fax: + 00 (301) 2221603. This label has made available much historically important material.

Folk-Legacy Records, Box 1148, Sharon, CT 06069; 800-836-0901.

Folktrax.org, Heritage House, 16 Brunswick Square, Gloucester, GL1 1UG, England. Maintaining Peter Kennedy’s legacy of English and Irish folklore.

Free Reed Records & Music, The Cedars, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 1DD, UK. British folk revival favorites.

Greentrax Recordings, Cockenzie Business Centre, Edinborough Road, Cockenzie, East Lothlan EH32 0HL, Scotland.

Kalan Music, IMÇ 6.blok No:6608 Unkapanı- Istanbul; 0 212 512 35 13. Produces a lot of great historical and modern Turkish folk and art music.

Kells Music, a part of Rego Irish Records, P.O. Box 1515, Green Island, N.Y. 12183; 1-800-458-REGO (7346).

Kicking Mule Records, an info page.

KRL (Lochshore, Monarch, ELM), RL, PO Box 5577, Newton Mearns, Glasgow, Scotland, G77 9BH; +44 141 616 0900.

Mulligan Records, now a Compass label.

Omnium Recordings, P.O. Box 7367, Minneapolis, MN 55407; 612-481-2320.

Park Records, P.O. Box 651, Oxford OX2 9RB, UK.

The Persian Arts Society, home to Kereshmeh Records, P.O. Box 13354, La Jolla, CA 92039; 858-605-6612 puts out a rich selection of Iranian music.

Putumayo World Music, 28 W. 25th St., 5th Floor, New York, NY 10010; 212-625-1400.

Real World Records, WOMAD Shop, Box Mill, Mill Lane, Box, Wiltshire, United Kingdom, SN13 8PL; +44 (0)870 720 2127.

Red House Records, P.O. Box 4044, St. Paul, Minnesota 55104; 800-695-4687.

Rounder Records (Flying Fish, Philo, Temple), One Rounder Way, Burlington, Massachusetts 01803; 617-354-0700; 800-ROUNDER (800-768-6337).

Shanachie Records, 37 East Clinton Street, Newton, New Jersey 07860; 800-497-1043.

Silver Wave Records, P.O. Box 7943, Boulder, CO 80306; 800-SIL-WAVE.

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings (600 Maryland Ave. SW, Suite 2001, Washington, DC 20024; 888-FOLKWAYS (365-5929) or 202-633-6450).

Sugar Hill Records, P.O. Box 55300, Duke Station, Durham, North Carolina 27717-5300; 800-996-4455.

Tara Music Company, Basement, 18 Upper Mount Street, Dublin 2, Ireland. Includes links to Tara artists such as Christy Moore, Liam O’Flynn, and Rita Connolly, sound clips, where to buy, and more.

Topic Records, 7 Fernie Business Park Station Road, UPPINGHAM, Rutland LE15 9TX, England.

Traditional Crossroads, P.O. Box 20320, Greeley Square Station, New York, NY 10001-9992; 800-422-6282. Fine recordings of traditional musics of the Middle East.

WildGoose Records, May Cottage, Fullerton Road, Wherwell, Hampshire. SP11 7JS. English music with a strong bias toward the traditional.


Another list of record company addresses or links: at folkmusic.org.

Mail-Order and Online Distributors

These outfits collectively offer for sale much of what we air. Rarer sources for particular CDs often appear in the playlists for the programs in which they were heard.

Bandcamp is a searchable distribution channel for independent artists to make their music available, through direct downloads, CDs, or other media—free, name your price, or for a set price or stated minimum.

CD Baby is no longer a retailer.

Claddagh Records, 65 Middle Abbey Street, Dublin 1 Ireland; 353 1 8720075, with an extensive catalog of Irish music.

Custy’s Traditional Music Shop, Cookes Lane, Ennis, Co. Clare, Ireland; +353 (0)65 6821727 for music from Ireland.

Digelius Music, Laivurinrinne 2, 00120 Helsinki, Finland; 358 9 666375 for a rich selection of Finnish music.

Discogs is an online music marketplace presented as a vast database of recordings with track lists and other info on CDs and LPs.

Elderly Instruments, 1100 N. Washington, Lansing, MI 48906; 517-372-7890, 888-473-5810. Recordings, new and used instruments, instructional videos, and more.

Farside Music, 36 Stanley Avenue, Beckenham, Kent BR3 6PX; (44) 020-8650-3040. They offer music from Japan, Okinawa, and other East Asian countries, as well as CD series from Japan, such as the World Music Library.

Hatikvah Music International, P.O. Box 48739, Los Angeles, CA 90048; 323-655-7083 features Klezmer, Sephardic, all sorts of Jewish music.

Ladyslipper, P.O. Box 3124-R, Durham, NC 27715; 800-634-6044. Music by women in all genres.

Last.fm is a way to search for or discover music, with options to play or download free offerings or to buy tracks, MP3 albums, or albums as physical media via Amazon, 7digital, or iTunes.

MusicScotland.com for Scottish as well as some Irish and other releases, links, and info.

Primarily a Cappella, P.O. Box D, San Anselmo, CA 94979; 800-SING-181. Dedicated to the discovery, dissemination, and celebration of the best vocal music from around the globe.

Roots & Rhythm, P.O. Box 837, El Cerrito, CA 94530; 888-ROOTS-66.

SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform that enables its users to upload, record, promote, and share their originally created sounds.

Studio 52, Dimitriou Gounari str. 46, Thessaloniki 54621, Greece. A rich source for all genres of Greek Music.

Tulumba.com for Turkish music in the U.S.

World Music Institute, 49 W. 27th St., Suite 930, New York, NY 10001; 212-545-7536. Catalog of int’l music.

Local Record Stores

Browse from this section down through Local Online Resources to see different kinds of listings for the Bay Area.

Amoeba Music, 1855 Haight Street, San Francisco; 415-831-1200; 2455 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley; 510-549-1125.

Down Home Music, 10341 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito 94530; 510-525-2129; 1809b Fourth St. Berkeley 94710; 510-204-9595.

Streetlight Records, 3979 24th Street, San Francisco; 888-682-3550; also 2350 Market Street; 888-396-2350.

Organizations

See also Dance under Online Resources.

Artists for Literacy is a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization aimed at connecting low-level readers to literature through the arts. Their SIBL Project in particular uses music (some of it available on CDs) as a vehicle to engage, inspire, and reinforce the magic of literature and the power of reading.

The Bay Area Country Dance Society promotes, preserves, and teaches traditional English and American music and dance in the San Francisco Bay area. You can find more contra dance links around the state and the nation at this location.

The Bay Area Flamenco Festival hosts authentic Flamenco musicians and dancers annually in September.

The Bay Area Storytelling Festival is an annual Spring event in Richmond.

The Cooley-Keegan branch of the Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCÉ) is the local branch of a worldwide organization to promote traditional Irish music, dance, language, and culture.

The Jewish Music Festival is a program of the Jewish Community Center of the East Bay, coming your way in March.

KlezCalifornia promotes Yiddish culture and klezmer music in the San Francisco Bay Area by creating participatory events, such as concerts, dance parties, participatory workshops, and smaller events, both independently and in collaboration with Jewish Community Centers, synagogues, and other groups.

Musicians United to Protect Bristol Bay is working to stop the Pebble Mine, a project that would be catastrophic for one of the world’s last and greatest wild fisheries and wild places, in Alaska.

The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance, or Folk Alliance for short, is a broad networking alliance of the folk music and dance community. Their site also includes a healthy collection of links.

The San Francisco branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, which offers classes and parties, and the parent organization.

The San Francisco Folk Music Club meets twice monthly. They are also the sponsors of the annual San Francisco Free Folk Festival.

The San Francisco Pipers’ Club offers a supportive environment for people learning the Irish uilleann pipes. Every two years, the club hosts the West Coast Piping Tionól, a weekend-long festival of piping.

Song-Circle is a gathering place for circle song enthusiasts in Israel and elsewhere. Unite in Babylon Israel has a page here.

The Sonoma County Folk Society (SoCoFoSo) is a non-profit, volunteer organization committed to providing access to the folk music scene in and around Sonoma County. Their site provides this calendar of events.

World Arts West, presenters of the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival. Fort Mason Center, Landmark Building D, San Francisco 94123-1382; 415-474-3914.

Local Venues

The Arthouse Gallery & Cultural Center, 2905 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley 94705; 510-472-3170. See also their Facebook page.

The Ashkenaz Music & Dance Community Center, 1317 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley 94702; 510-525-5054.

The Back Room, 1984 Bonita Avenue, Berkeley 94704; 510-654-3808.

The Blackthorn Tavern, 834 Irving Street, San Francisco 94122; 415-564-6627. Culann’s Hounds is their house band.

The Blue Heron Restaurant, P.O. Box 20, Steelhead Boulevard, Duncans Mills 95430; 707-865-9135.

Café Du Nord, 2170 Market Street, San Francisco 94114; 415-861-5016.

The Chapel, 777 Valencia Street, San Francisco 94110; 415-551-5157.

The Clarion Performing Arts Center, 816 Sacramento Street, San Francisco 94108; 415-391-1317, featuring a world music concert series.

The Croatian American Cultural Center, 60 Onondaga Ave., San Francisco 94112; 510-649-0941. Host to the Slavonic Web.

Don Quixote’s International Music Hall, 6275 Highway 9, Felton 95018; 831-335-2800.

The Fiddling Cricket concert series now happens at different south bay venues. Their number is 408-499-9441.

Fifth Street Farms, 1517 Fifth Street, Berkeley 94710; 510-525-9248. This is a setting for a house concert series. Call for reservations.

The Fillmore, 1805 Geary Blvd., San Francisco 94115; 415-346-6000.

The Fox Theatre and the Little Fox, 2215 Broadway, Redwood City 94063; 650-FOX-4119.

The Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse, 2020 Addison Street, Berkeley 94704; 510-644-2020.

The Garden Gate Creativity Center is now closed but may be putting on house concerts.

The Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell between Polk and Larkin, San Francisco; 415-885-0750.

Johnny Foley’s Irish House, 243 O’Farrell St. between Mason St. and Powell St., San Francisco 94102; 415-954-0777.

Kuumbwa Jazz, 320-2 Cedar Street, Santa Cruz 95060; 831-427-2227.

La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley 94705; 510-849-2568.

The Monkey House, University Avenue, Berkeley, but contact by e-mail through their site to learn the address and other information.

Murphy’s Irish Pub, 464 First St. East, Sonoma 95476; 707-935-0660.

The Musician’s Coffeehouse Concert Series, at various East Bay venues; 925-229-2710.

Old First Concerts (mostly classical) are held at the Old First Presbyterian Church, 1751 Sacramento Street, San Francisco 94109; 415-474-1608.

The Palms Playhouse, 13 Main Street, Winters 95694 (west of Davis); 530-795-1825.

The Plough and Stars Irish pub, 116 Clement Street at 2nd Avenue, San Francisco; 415-751-1122.

The Red Poppy Art House is a neighborhood center for the intersection of cultural and inter-generational artistic engagement located in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District, 2698 Folsom Street, San Francisco; 650-731-5383; info@redpoppyarthouse.org.

The Rose Labyrinth, 2138 Cedar Street, Berkeley 94709.

The Rose Street House of Music in Berkeley, 510-594-4000 ext. 687.

The San Francisco Maritime Park Association, host to occasional concerts on board the Balclutha.

The San Gregorio General Store at Highway 84 and Stage Road in San Gregorio offers live music on weekends.

Strings is a recording studio and performance showcase space located in Emeryville, featuring weekly performances by locally and internationally recognized acoustic musicians; 510-653-5700.

Studio Grand, 3234 Grand Avenue, Oakland 94610; 510-761-5652.

The Sweetwater Music Hall, 19 Corte Madera Ave., Mill Valley 94941; Cafe 415-388-1700, Box Office 415-388-1100.

The Throckmorton Theatre, 142 Throckmorton Avenue, Mill Valley 94941; 415-383-9600.

The UC Theatre, 2036 University Avenue, Berkeley 94704; 510-356-4000.

Villa Montalvo, 15400 Montalvo Road, Saratoga 95070; 408-961-5800. Montalvo is a nonprofit arts organization that holds regular concert series at its Mediterranean-style villa.

The Wisteria Ways house concert series, Oakland; 510-655-2771; or e-mail per site.

Online Resources

This section begins with some links to Bay Area sites; it then lists sites around the world treating folk music at large; regional musics and other topics follow.

Events Calendars

Check out the AmeriCeltic calendar and other features and consider subscribing to their weekly newsletter.

The Bluegrass Signal Concerts & Festivals listings.

The Folknik calendar. Download a current issue of the Folknik as a PDF file via the Folknik Online > Current Issue links and page down to the regularly scheduled and day-by-day event listings.

SFGate’s Bay Area Events calendar.

The SF Station calendar of Bay Area events.

The SFWeekly concert calendar.

The Sonoma County Folk Society calendar of events.

Local

Celtic Crossings, for concerts, classes, workshops, and other resources.

The Folknik, San Francisco Folk Music Club, 885 Clayton Street, San Francisco 94117; 415-661-2217.

The Slavonic Web, a project of San Francisco’s Croatian American Cultural Center, offers information on Balkan and Balkan-inspired music happening locally.

Where’s the Craic? from the Irish Herald.

Music at Large

The Contemplator, listings and studies of O’Carolan tunes, Child ballads, early popular songs, and songs of the sea, by Leslie Nelson.

Folking dot Com, “a folking great community” online, with artists, festivals, clubs, and more.

The FolkLib Index: A Library of Folk Music Links, which is very diverse but focuses on folk music, bluegrass and old-time music, acoustic blues, and fingerstyle acoustic guitar.

Mauro Ravera’s Folksy Links, folk bands and musicians online, listed by name or by country.

The International Traditional Music Society, with a tune database, links for different countries and instruments, and more.

The Mudcat Café hosts the Digital Tradition Folk Song Server and includes a lively Discussion Forum, among other things.

Tradmusic.com is a Scottish-based interactive resource designed to support traditional music and groups.

Webzines and Reviews

Many of the sellers listed under Mail-Order and Online Distributors offer good capsule descriptions of recordings.

See also print magazines.

Folkworld: the online music magazine, with a European emphasis.

The Irish Music Review, with reviews of more than 500 albums and some books.

Minor 7th, reviewing the best in non-mainstream acoustic guitar music.

Musical Traditions, an English Webzine covering a wide range of world musical traditions.

Rambles.net, a cultural arts Webzine covering the British Isles, Celtic lands, and elsewhere; it also includes numerous concert and book reviews.

Rootsworld, a magazine of roots, folk, and pop music.

World Music Central has artist lists, reviews, venues, organizations, and more.

Song Finders and Tune Finders

The Bodleian Library Broadside Ballads include more than 30,000 ballads reproduced digitally from sixteenth- to twentieth-century sources.

The Celtic Lyrics Corner has lyrics and translations for songs by some contemporary Celtic artists and groups, arranged by album.

The Digital Tradition Folk Song Server (“Lyrics and Knowledge Search,” the box in the upper-left corner) can help you find the source for some lyrics. (Try this copy in case of problems.)

The Fiddler’s Companion at Ceolas is a huge encyclopedia of fiddle tunes from the Celtic, British and American traditions.

Folk Music: An Index to Recorded Resources, a song database searchable by title or performer.

The Full English is a groundbreaking project of the English Folk Dance and Song Society drawing together the most important early twentieth-century collections into the most comprehensive searchable database of British folk songs, tunes, dances, and customs in the world. It is a project of the band by the same name, led by Fay Hield.

Try the tune database at the International Traditional Music Society.

The Irish Traditional Music Tune Index is a way to identify a tune or a recording.

The Session is an Irish tune exchange, somewhere you can find where a tune has been recorded, or conversely, what tunes appear on numerous albums. It also lists many live sessions and invites discussions.

Radio and Other Media

The BBC Radio 2 Folk Site, with Webcasts and other features. See also the BBC site for Scotland’s Music.

Bluegrass Signal is Peter Thompson and company’s program of roots music airing Saturday afternoons following FM&B on KALW.

JoAnn’s End of Life Radio site offers audio for her series of reports on advance care planning, palliative care, advance directives, and physician-assisted dying, along with print versions of the reports and helpful resources.

Festival Radio is a source for continuous folk and roots music programming on the Web.

The Folk DJ List, the Web site for an e-mail list catering to folk music programmers and others interested in folk music on the radio.

Folk Radio UK offers 24-hour Webcasts of folk and alternative music, features, reviews, news, and more.

Prisons in Crisis is the site dedicated to FM&B host JoAnn Mar’s radio production about the prison overcrowding crisis in California. The program is available there to listen to.

The prodigious PublicRadioFan.com will tell you what folk music (or other public radio programming) is streaming at the moment, as well as info about public radio stations around the world.

Radio for Peace International, progressive Webcasting.

RTÉ Online, including live music broadcasts from Ireland. Also, Clare FM, which features live traditional music 7 to 9 P.M. (beginning 11 A.M. Pacific Time) weekdays.

Scottish & Celtic Broadcasting on the Internet, a handy starting point.

Dore Stein’s Tangents program fills the KALW airwaves with an eclectic mix of music on Saturday evenings.

ThistleRadio.com is the official site for the Thistle & Shamrock, the popular NPR program of Celtic roots music that formerly preceded us. You can stream the last several shows, find podcasts, and more. Playlists are posted a few days following a broadcast.

Dance

Berkeley Folk Dancers bring you Folk Dance World. The BFD offers a rich repertoire of dances from around the world and skilled teachers.

The Country Dance and Song Society (CDSS) is an association (headquartered in Massachusetts) of people and groups with a common interest in English and Anglo-American folk dance, music, and song.

The English Folk Dance and Song Society is headquartered at the Cecil Sharp House in London.

Set Dancing News will help you find where, when, and even how to get involved in Irish set dancing.

Instruments

Accordions Worldwide, including concertinas. See also Accordionlinks.com.

The ezfolk.com site focuses on instructional resources for banjo, folk guitar, and ukelele but includes many other links and resources.

Folkfriends in Hamburg makes and sells replicas of medieval and renaissance acoustic instruments as well as contemporary Irish and folk instruments, including some originals. They also repair, restore, and customize old or antique instruments.

The Guide to the Irish Flute and the Wooden Flute Home Page.

Guitar-book.com by Intuition Guitar offers some promising books and e-books for learning guitar and is itself a useful collection of tips for beginning and intermediate players.

The Guitar Education Resource Guide leads to varied resources for guitarists and guitar students.

The Irish Fiddle brings together tunes, interviews, sample performances of legendary fiddlers, and info on regional styles.

The House of Musical Traditions, Carroll Ave., Takoma Park, MD 20912, 301-270-9090, supplies acoustic instruments, accessories, and books from around the world.

Irish harps at harp.net. See also dealer Melody’s Traditional Music & Harp Shoppe.

Lark in the Morning, world musical instruments, books, recordings, and videos.

Mugwumps Online for info on vintage and modern, mostly stringed, instruments.

Pipes: Uillean pipe news and information. Galician bagpipes. A rich guide to Northumbrian small pipes and pipers.

The Recorder Home Page covers all aspects of recorders.

Check out The Whistle Shop or the Chiff & Fipple to buy whistles and paraphernalia.

Greek/Balkan/Roma/Near Eastern

Balkanarama’s Balkan links page leads to sites concerned with Balkan music, folklore, and culture.

Notes on Turkish Alevi culture from the Alevi Federation of Australia. See also Paul Koerbin’s blog of reflections on the life and poetry of spiritual revolutionary Pir Sultan Abdal, and the Wikipedia article on Ashiks.

Balkanfolk.com for Balkan workshops, events, CDs, downloads, T-shirts, Windows backgrounds, ring tones, and more.

The Klezmer Shack is a central resource for klezmer (and Sephardic) bands, reviews, studies.

musiq.com: World and experimental music; makam music, rebetika, ouds.

Ostad Elahi, the late musician, mystic, philosopher, statesman from Iranian Kurdistan. Just a lovely site.

The Patrin Web Journal: Romani Culture and History.

Here are some notes on rebetika: from Matt Barrett’s Travel Guides, on musiq.com, from the Rebetissa, a site dedicated to the women of rebetika, and from singer Sophia Bilides.

Sephardic Music: A Century of Recordings plans to document the whole history of recorded Sephardic music.

Notes on Sevdah or Sevdalinka, the soul music of Bosnia, from Sevdah North America, Inc.

The Turkish Cultural Foundation’s Turkish Music Portal, for various aspects of Turkish classical and folk musics.

You can put together search terms with this virtual Greek keyboard, at a site where you can also find keyboards for many other languages and alphabets. Copy and paste terms straight into YouTube or Google, for instance, to find performances and sources not available through the Roman alphabet.

English

English Folk and Traditional Music on the Internet, a comprehensive guide to resources.

The English Folk Dance and Song Society is headquartered at the Cecil Sharp House in London. See also the entry for the Full English.

English folk music performers, a useful list of links.

The Traditional Song Forum, a UK-based group devoted to studying and disseminating traditional songs and singing.

Irish/Scottish/Celtic

AmeriCeltic is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization, whose mission is to restore awareness of, celebrate, and preserve the culture and history of Americans of Celtic descent in Northern California by promoting Celtic events and history.

Ceolas, with much information online about Celtic music, and many further links, including their IrishNet directory.

The Donegal Fiddle Pages are full of information on this unique style of fiddling and its heritage.

The Irish Traditional Music Tune Index is a way to identify a tune or a recording.

MadforTrad.com, Irish CDs, tutorials, news, tour and festival info, artist listings, tune listings.

The Online Academy of Irish Music, out of West County Clare, offers a variety of courses and some free lessons, opportunities for feedback, and retreats.

Scottish-folk-music.com lists many musicians and bands, along with events, song lyrics, and further links.

The Traditional Music Forum brings together and represents traditional music groupings in Scotland.

Scandinavian and Baltic

Latvian Music Pages, a list of many links in all genres of music, including further links pages for Estonia, Lithuania, and Russia.

Music Finland: “Anything and everything for Finnish music.”

Norwegian Folk Music and Folk Dance Internet Resources from the Hardanger Fiddle Association of America.

Swedish Traditional Music is a quick introduction to traditional styles and instruments.

Australia and New Zealand

Folk Alliance Australia, with a folk directory.

New Zealand Folk Song, home-made songs about life in New Zealand: Maori, Celtic, sea-shanties, more.

Native American

An Index of Native American Music Resources on the Internet.

Here is a range of Native Music and Arts Links by a Mohawk librarian at the University of Pittsburg.

Eco-Music

Bernie Krause's Wild Sanctuary has nature CDs, sound safaris, descriptions of research projects, and more.

Naturesongs, with free samples of digital recordings from nature, is based in Arizona.

Corvids

A corvids wiki.

How to Tell a Raven from a Crow. I once heard someone call a blackbird a crow, but surely you know better.

Publications

Magazines

Acoustic Guitar Central, the resource-rich site for Acoustic Guitar Magazine, P.O. Box 767, San Anselmo, CA 94979; 415-485-6946.

fRoots (“Local Music from Out There”), P.O. Box 337, London N4 1TW, England.

Irish Music Magazine, 19 Clare St, Dublin 2, Ireland.

The Living Tradition, P.O. Box 1026, Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, KA2 0LG, Scotland, with a British Isles emphasis.

Penguin Eggs, 10942 80th Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 0R1. Folk, roots, and world music from a Canadian perspective.

Sing Out! P.O. Box 5460, Bethlehem, PA 18015; 610-865-5366.

Strings, String Letter Publishing, PO Box 767, San Anselmo, CA 94979; 415-485-6946. All things (bowed) strings.

Books

Joe Boyd, White Bicycles: Making Music in the 1960s. London: Serpent’s Tail, 2010. A memoir by our sometime guest who was the producer at the heart of much of the folk/pop music of the time.

Frances James Child, The English and Scottish Popular Ballads. Northfield, Minnesota: Loomis House Press, 2011. The principal source for the ballad tradition of England and Scotland as we know it.

Bruce Cockburn, Rumours of Glory: A Memoir. New York: HarperOne, 2014. A spiritual odyssey.

Shirley Collins, All in the Downs: Reflections on Life, Landscape, and Song. London: Strange Attractions Press, 2020. A memoir by the long-time great balladeer from East Sussex.

New!  Ani Choying Drolma, Singing for Freedom. Kathmandu: Publication Nepa-Laya, 2009. The story of how the author escaped a violent refugee family and found encouragement to sing from a sympathetic Buddhist teacher, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche (you might like to read his amazing autobiography, Blazing Splendor: The Memoirs of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Boudhanath: Rangjung Yeshe Publications, 2005), going on to international recognition and a role promoting women’s education and rights and other causes in Nepal.

Chad Hansen, Tao Te Ching on The Art of Harmony: The New Illustrated Edition of the Chinese Philosophical Masterpiece. New York: Shelter Harbor Press, 2017. A beautifully illustrated and printed edition of the Chinese classic by a master translator who gets things right.

Jeanette Leach, Seasons They Change: The Story of Acid and Psychedelic Folk. London: Hal Leonard Corporation, 2011. This book introduces and brings to life many famous and obscure artists and bands from the first flowering of psych folk to its more recent revival.

Sam Lee, The Nightingale. London: Century, 2021. An enchanting and beautifully packaged reflection on the life of the bird in nature and its place in world folklore and literature by the fine English balladeer.

Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris, The Lost Words. London: Anansi International, 2018. And also The Lost Spells. London: Anansi International, 2020. Beautiful collections of poems and illustrations about natural beings, originally intended to counter the disappearance of words for them from children’s dictionaries. Favorite albums Spell Songs and Spell Songs II: Let the Light In were inspired by these books.

Fiona Ritchie and Doug Orr, Wayfaring Strangers: The Musical Voyage from Scotland and Ulster to Appalachia. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 2014. The host of The Thistle & Shamrock traces this ballad tradition from the old world to the new.

Cecil J. Sharp, English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians. Northfield, Minnesota: Loomis House Press, 2012. Here also is an online edition. The author’s introduction affords a striking picture of the lives of his Appalachian informants early in the last century.

Rose Simpson, Muse, Odalisque, Handmaiden: A Girl’s Life in the Incredible String Band. London: Strange Attractor Press, 2021. Many fine observations on the music and the times, and on how the different personalities and approaches came together and finally came apart.

Richard Thompson, Beeswing: Losing My Way and Finding My Voice 1967–1975. London: Algonquin Books, 2021. The noted singer-songwriter and guitarist makes interesting observations on the English scene in those days.

Rob Young, Electric Eden: Unearthing Britain’s Visionary Music. London: Faber & Faber, 2011. The story of the emergence of folk-rock in England.

(Very) Miscellaneous

An assortment of interesting sites we’ve bookmarked.

Anoíxi Means Open: Cohost Bob Campbell’s long-time friend Lorin Piper has a Web site introducing her forthcoming memoir of many seasons spent in Greece. She’s also included some notes on Greek music, useful Greek recipes, book reviews, and more.

Calendars: a study of the Celtic calendar with festivals and holidays, a Calendar of Jewish Holidays, the days of Nourooz, the Persian New Year.

The Center for Biological Diversity: Working to secure the future for all species hovering on the brink of extinction.

Chicken on a Unicycle: Histories of local clubs and bands of the psychedelic era, with charts of musical geneologies and many vintage posters.

Common Dreams, a progressive portal. See also AlterNet.org.

The Daoism Depot, with a Dao quote of the moment. See also the Taoism Virtual Library.

The Dark Mountain Project is a network of writers, artists, and thinkers who have stopped believing the stories our civilisation tells itself. It draws much inspiration from the work of California poet Robinson Jeffers. (“The beauty of modern / Man is not in the persons but in the / Disastrous rhythm, the heavy and mobile masses, the dance of the / Dream-led masses down the dark mountain.”)

The Digger Archives, from Gerard Winstanley to Emmett Grogan. See also Hippies on the Web, Haight Ashbury music and culture.

Charles Eisenstein, author and speaker, offers a fresh vision for economic and social life based on interbeing.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center.

The Enigma of the Green Man offers varied reflections on this mysterious image. From there, William Anderson’s book Green Man: The Archetype of Our Oneness with the Earth offers a persuasive way of connecting the dots.

Extinction Rebellion, a dramatic response to the greatest crisis of our time, including a guide to finding a local group.

The Robinson Jeffers Tor House Foundation, dedicated to the great poet of California.

KissThisGuy.com, the archive of misheard lyrics.

The Marginalian, Maria Popova’s extraordinary ongoing reflections on life, literature, poetry, philosophy, and music, with free subscriptions to her semiweekly newsletter but suggested donations.

Navdanya is a movement for biodiversity and sustainable agriculture rooted in the work of Dr. Vandana Shiva.

The Organic Consumers Association: A grassroots organization dealing with crucial issues of food safety, industrial agriculture, genetic engineering, children’s health, corporate accountability, Fair Trade, environmental sustainability, and other key topics. We read that a class of pesticides is killing bees, pesticide-coated seeds are killing songbirds, drifting sprays are killing farmworkers. These people have a clear-eyed view of the situation and of emerging alternatives.

The Pachamama Alliance says this of its mission: “With roots in the Amazon rainforest, we equip people around the world with inspiration and training to regenerate the planet’s ecosystems, bring justice to their communities, and restore our relationships with the Earth, each other, and ourselves.”

Patreon, a way to directly support favorite musicians in these times when traditional payment models are failing, “in exchange for exclusive access, extra content, or a closer look into their creative journey.”

The Planet Drum Foundation, a voice for bioregional sustainability, education, and culture.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, spearheading direct action to protect the life of the world’s oceans.

Terrain.org, a journal of the built & natural environments.

Tricycle: Currents of ancient and modern Buddhist thought.

Credits

The colorful font used for some page heads and buttons is known as Troubador, designed by Electric Typographer (the late Judith Sutcliffe). Otherwise, the text and headings are in the fonts Lora and Andika (given downloading fonts is enabled in your browser), which are available for free use from the Font Squirrel. (Here are the SIL Open Font Licenses for Lora and Andika. Troubador is licensed through FontShop.) Lora looks really good on newer systems but renders pretty well even under Windows XP. Andika was designed to help teach literacy but seems to have more personality than some sans-serif fonts.

Some Celtic knot images were made freely available an age ago by a source that can no longer be ascertained. The design at the bottom of the main playlist page is still available from Galganov.

Our ISP is Sonic.net, headquartered in Santa Rosa. Pages were hand-made, mostly with the CoffeeCup HTML Editor. Older photos were casually taken with a Canon PowerShot SX210, more recent ones on any handy smart phone, and all were edited with an ancient copy of PaintShop Pro.

JoAnn Mar is responsible for the original broad concept for the site and Bob Campbell for all the good, bad, and ugly of the implementation.

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Information on how to reach us is included on our Contact page. Please let us know, for instance, of any changed or broken links here or of other interesting sites to add or areas you would like to see covered.